Domestic billet prices in Turkey have decreased by $5/mt over the past week and are currently at $435-450/mt ex-works amid the weakness of domestic rebar and merchant bar demand in Turkey as well as the slight fall recorded in import scrap quotations. Market sources report that billet prices in Turkey’s Iskenderun region are lower as compared to billet prices in the Izmir region, and so it is harder for the level of $450/mt to gain acceptance in Iskenderun.
Meanwhile, SteelOrbis has been informed that ex-CIS billet prices to Turkey are at $440-445/mt CFR, though it is also heard that CIS-based billet producers are trying to increase their prices to $445-450/mt CFR Turkey. Since Turkish buyers expect a fall in both domestic and ex-CIS billet offers given the lower scrap quotations recorded in the most recent deal reported, they have adopted a wait-and-see stance towards current offers.
On the other hand, Turkish mills have reduced their export offers by $10/mt week on week to $430-435/mt FOB. Also, market players are curious about how Turkish mills will respond to Saudi Arabian buyers’ firm bids at $445-450/mt CFR.